Former bureaucrat Shantmanu was on Saturday sworn in as the State Election Commissioner of Jammu and Kashmir for a five-year term, emphasizing the urgent need to conduct long-pending panchayat and urban local body elections in the Union Territory.
The oath of office was administered by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha at a ceremony held at Lok Bhavan. The event was attended by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather, Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, and Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat.
Speaking to the media, Shantmanu described taking over the responsibility as a matter of “great happiness and pride.” He highlighted the significance of local body elections, stating, “These elections are vital pillars of our democratic framework, particularly in strengthening decentralised governance and grassroots development. Since they have not been held for some time now, it becomes all the more important.”
Shantmanu also assured that he would work with full commitment to ensure the effective discharge of his duties.
The tenure of municipal councils in Jammu and Kashmir ended in October-November 2023, while panchayats and block development councils completed their five-year term on January 9, 2024. With district development councils’ tenure ending on February 24, there will soon be no elected local bodies functioning in the Union Territory.
Officials noted that delays in holding local elections were due to factors such as the delimitation exercise and reservation of wards for Other Backward Classes. Recently, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had stressed that his government was making arrangements to hold the elections at the earliest, but the vacancy in the State Election Commissioner’s post had been a major hurdle.
Under the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act and relevant Municipal Acts, the State Election Commission has the authority to prepare electoral rolls and conduct local elections. On February 17, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha appointed Shantmanu, a 1991-batch officer of the AGMUT cadre who recently retired as Additional Chief Secretary and Financial Commissioner in Jammu and Kashmir, as the new State Election Commissioner. He succeeds B R Sharma, whose tenure ended in April 2024.
